Back in 2016 I was lucky enough to interview Greg Puciato about his new project The Black Queen. To this day it’s one of my favourite interviews as I was truly inspired by his passion, honesty and musical ability. Now fast forward to 2019 and tonight I will finally get to experience The Black Queen live. I never thought I would get to see them live so tonight promises to be something truly special.

It was a sold out show and it was quite evident as there was barely enough room to move in the packed Lansdowne. The audience varied from goths to rockers and hardcore Dillinger fans. The main support came in the form of Drab Majesty a darkwave electro duo who hail from Los Angeles. This really set the tone for the night as the audience watched on in amazement. To be honest it felt like I was suddenly transported back to a dimly lit club in the eighties where the entire room was lost in the music. Drab Majesty seemed to have quite a cult following in Sydney so the audience was very appreciative the band made the journey to Australia.

Now the time had come for the main reason we were all here. The Black Queen took to the stage with a huge amount of cheering from the crowd and wasted no time getting onto the music. Helping kick off the set was “Thrown into the dark” which seamlessly rolled into “Ice To Never”. One of the hugest reactions from the crowd came from when they played “Maybe we should”. Every audience member was in full voice singing along to every song. Which was quite a sight to see being that the band are still somewhat underground.

Greg’s voice was absolutely perfect all night and had the entire audience transfixed on every word. The musicianship of all members on stage was also evident by how the sound was so precise and washed over you mirroring the albums sounds.

The set closed with “One Edge of Two” which left everyone on a dream state high. From hit TV shows like Stranger Things to the synth driven sounds of The Black Queen it seems eighties nostalgia is back in a big way. Tonight everyone at the Lansdowne in Sydney experienced collectively an experience they wont soon forget. From the euphoric sounds to the erratic and alluring lighting it was a show that must be experienced live. While a Dillinger Escape Plan show had the ferocity to move you physically in contrast seeing Greg front The Black Queen will move you on another level to emotional ecstasy. With a sold out tour hopefully that’s a sign we will see The Back Queen return to the land down under soon.

Jimmy Barnes has today announced his biggest headlining tour of this century –Shutting Down Your Town – playing all his classic hits plus highlights from his acclaimed new album, My Criminal Record, released Friday, 31 May 2019 on Bloodlines. Members of Jimmy’s mailing list will get pre...